A Reno man nabbed for allegedly torturing a kitten to death in San Francisco had adopted more kittens to harm in Nevada just two weeks before his arrest and run.
William Ohlson, 33, had gone into PetSmart –– a pet superstore in Reno –– and adopted two three-month-old kittens, Haven and Nola, through the Biggest Little Cat Rescue’s adoption program.
“Within days of their adoption, Haven was found abandoned inside his carrier in a dumpster near William Ohlson’s residence in Reno, Nevada,” the group wrote in a social media post.
The adoption center said Ohlson had stated on the adoption documents that he was adopting the kittens as a surprise birthday gift for his girlfriend, Lindsay Maillo.
Laura Herbst, Director of Communications & Animal Advocacy for The Biggest Little Cat Rescue, said that representatives of Washoe County Regional Animal Services informed the rescue center that Ohlson was on the agency’s “Do Not Adopt” list.
The alleged kitten torturer was arrested at gunpoint at a house in downtown Reno last Thursday after he skipped his scheduled arraignment in Superior Court last Monday, which led the judge to issue a bench warrant for his arrest.
He was being sought by the authorities on animal abuse charges after he allegedly “violently tortured” a small kitten in an ATM vestibule in the 1800 block of Market Street at around 2 a.m. on July 1.
He is currently being held at Washoe County Detention Center on four charges relating to resisting an officer and failing to obey a court order.
Ohlson has a long rap sheet with multiple failures to appear in court. Nevada’s Washoe County court records show that his older cases — which stretch back from 2016 through 2024 –– involved drug, property, and other serious charges.
Ohlson had pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to kill or torture a white kitten in August 2020 at a Walmart, reported the Reno Gazette Journal.
Ohlson previously pleaded guilty in an older case and entered a court-run drug rehab program, where he was set to graduate. But he still has two open criminal cases — one from early 2022 and another filed in April 2025.
Now, he’s facing three new charges in a July 2026 case, including allegedly killing or abusing an animal, neglecting an animal, and obstructing police.
